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Former Director Susan Anderson

In her 25+ career with the City of Portland, Susan Anderson has been a visionary director of three bureaus, including the Portland Energy Office, Office of Sustainable Development, and Bureau of Planning and Sustainability. She has built partnerships throughout Portland and literally around the world to creatively and effectively pursue and implement policies and programs that have made our community more prosperous, healthy, resilient and equitable.

Under her direction, Portland was the first City in the U.S. to create a local Climate Action Plan (1993). In 2000, Susan was chosen to lead the creation of the Office of Sustainable Development, an entrepreneurial office which leveraged millions of dollars of private, foundation and federal funds to pioneer new sustainability initiatives that provided practical solutions for Portland residents and businesses.

In 2009, then-Mayor Sam Adams asked Susan to lead the new Bureau of Planning and Sustainability. Under her guidance, BPS created the blueprints for the next two decades of growth and development in the city. In particular, her efforts focused on ways to advance equity within urban development and sustainability practices through the creation of the Portland Plan, 2015 Climate Action Plan, 2035 Comprehensive Plan, Central City 2035 and dozens of new programs and projects.

Susan left the City of Portland Bureau of Planning and Sustainability in early October 2018 and continues to pursue efforts in energy efficiency and climate policy.